“And
he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater;
and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods.” -Luke
12:15-21

I
crossed paths with a buddy Bill the other day and he was distraught.
I don't want it to appear as if I take comfort in saying “I told
you so,” but I have to admit the urge to say it was causing spasms
in my tongue.

But
I bit my tongue because some things don't need to be said. Especially
when it is obvious that the one I am about to say it to has suddenly
come to the same realization. I just let him vent for a while.

“Coach,
our pastor unveiled a new building plan last Sunday. It seems as if
we have out-grown the building, going to four services on the weekends,
and that our sanctuary is too small. When Pastor Tom shot the power
point up on the screen my heart sank. You immediately came to mind Coach.

He
flashed drawings that had been created by the architect and handed out
color fliers of the new facility. It was magnificent to look at but
something inside of me started to ache. Especially when I heard the
price-tag....$6.9 million. I could almost hear your voice in my head
repeating what you have said to me so many times...'HOLDING TANK.' The
church is nothing more than a huge pen where the sheep are fed.

I'm
sick about it Coach. I don't know what I should do.”

“What
bothers you about it?”
I asked him.

“I
don't know, coach. Several things I guess. I remember when we first
planted the church and how exciting it was. It grew out of a home Bible
study, you know. We were all sick of the churches we were attending
and our small group felt like a family when we got together. It was
intimate, people cared about one another, we knew each others names...and
their children. Now...well...it has grown into a huge sheep pen...just
like you warned. And now we need a bigger barn.

And
the extravagance of the building...WOW. It sure has everything you could
ever want. Big parking lot, large sanctuary, state-of-the-art sound
system, recreation center with a gymnasium, great nursery and rooms
for Sunday school...even a coffee shop in the foyer. But something doesn't
feel right.”

My
tongue is quivering like a kernel of corn getting ready to pop, but
I gnawed the quivering into silence.

“There
must be a lot of good stuff going on there,” I offered. “Something
is certainly drawing them. And growth is always a sign of life. Anything
living is growing.”

“Oh,
we are growing alright, but the church just isn't the same as it used
to be. Most of the people who attend are total strangers to me. Don't
get me wrong, I am glad they are coming, but somewhere in all of this
growth we have lost a sense of who we are. How can you possibly call
4000 people members of your church family? Building the new building
will permit us to bring in more people but I really don't know if that
is good. At times I feel no differently than I would at a football game.
We are all cheering for the same team, and singing the same fight songs,
but I just don't feel the connection to the body that we used to feel.

“Well,
what do you think is making the church grow so much Bill?” I lead
him.

“Oh,
there are a lot of reasons that people come. The preaching is great.
Pastor Tom really hits you where you live. He doesn't compromise on
the Word. And he really reaches the young people. Our church is full
of 25-40 year olds and lot's of children. Pastor Tom has a great message
for young families.

Plus,
we have gobs of programs...youth groups, young singles, divorce recovery,
basketball and softball leagues, young mothers, men's breakfasts...and
everything is casual. You don't have to dress all fancy and the worship
is the best. The worship leader really ushers us into the presence of
the Lord”

“So,
I am a bit confused.” I queried. “Sounds like things are
going pretty good. What concerns you?”

His
eyes dropped to the floor as if he was looking at a bug racing into
the shadows, and then bounced his eyes off of the linoleum back towards
me.

“I
don't know, Coach. Just a feeling...a feeling that we are missing something.
It seems like so many in the church have a shallow relationship with
Jesus. I mean...they seem to be saved...but I don't know how real their
relationship is. Seems to me, that for many of the people, their Christianity
is a mile wide and an inch deep. I sometimes wonder how many are really
sheep mixed in with a bunch of goats. You know what I am saying, Coach?”

“Yeah,
I get where you are coming from. Why do you think so many are goats?”
I asked.

“Well,
and please understand that I don't want to sound judgmental or anything
because I am far from perfect, but there are a lot of things that make
me concerned. For one thing, we have a lot of people coming to church
who are shacking up with each other. Now I understand why Pastor Tom
doesn't hit on it very hard because we can't save them if we run them
off, but at some point wouldn't we start seeing fruit of their conversion?
Aren't there still some standards to living the Christian life?

And
another thing, it seems as if so many of them are in debt up to their
eyeballs...struggling to pay their mortgage, and two-car payments, and
babysitters...and the tithe. I mean, it is tough on a young family today.

And
now we want to build an even bigger church...and expect these young
babes in Christ to dig even deeper in their budgets to build a bigger
church, to sit with more people who they don't know...” His
voice trailed off.

“Why
don't you speak with the church leadership and offer them an ulterior
solution with the overcrowding.” I suggested. “Instead of
sinking $7 million into a bigger barn perhaps you could rent the local
high school on Sunday mornings for the services. You could sure rent
that a bunch of times before you reached $7 million...and no overhead
for maintenance.

They
have a gym that seats about 2500 and you could put chairs on the floor.
If my math is correct, at a rental of $1000 per week, $52,000 per year,
you could worship in that gym for 134 years before you reach $7 million.
The mortgage would have to be at least $30,000 per month. You could
sure help a lot of people with the extra money you saved just by renting.”

“I
don't see that happening.” He said matter-of-factly. “A
gymnasium just wouldn't feel like a church. We would have to work awfully
hard to stir up an anointing in a high school gym. And besides that,
I'm not sure people would come to church at a high school. We are so
programmed to coming into the “church” building every Sunday...most
folks take pride in a nice building. I don't think they would invite
their friends to church in a gym. Plus all of the set-up it would take
to get the gym ready.

But
Coach, that is not what is REALLY bothering me. A couple of weeks ago
a buddy of mine invited me to do some street ministry with him and some
of his friends. I had never done anything like that before so I was
a bit apprehensive. But he encouraged me to go and it was one of the
most gratifying things I have ever done.

Coach,
do you have any idea the number of really needy people who live withing
a couple miles of our church? I mean people who have nothing and their
only means of subsistence is leaning on the government for help. I couldn't
believe it...had no idea, the conditions that many people live in.

This
is happening only 2 miles from our church...and we want to put $7 million
into a new building...I've seen the need first-hand, Coach. I asked
my pastor if our church could get involved. He said we had too much
on our plate right now.”

I
looked at my friend and smiled. “Let me ask you something
Bill. Which is more important to Jesus, a big beautiful building in
which to “worship” Him, or a broken and contrite heart for
the lost in the world? On Sunday morning, would Jesus be excited to
be in your brand new church, or on the streets ministering to the needs
of the down-trodden?

I
read in Malachi that the tithe was for the storehouse...that their might
be meat in His house. Is the money that people give to the work of the
Lord supposed to be used for buildings and parking lots? If the church
is the “storehouse” and the storehouse is where the “meat”
is to be stored, are the people supposed to eat blacktop and carpet?

Bill,
does your pastor lead your people out into the streets where the lost
are? Does your church have a “go ye” mentality or a “come
ye” mentality? Will your $7 million barn glorify Jesus or will
it only bring honor to your congregation?Jesus
warned us:

“Then
shall the King say onto those on his right hand, Come ye, blessed of
my Father and inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation
of the world: For I was hungry and you gave me meat; thirsty and you
gave me drink: I was a stranger and you took me in: Naked and you clothed
me: Sick and you visited me: In prison and you came unto me...”

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“I
know Coach. I know. I used to buy into the lie that I was only one guy
and what difference could I make. But last week I looked into the eyes
of a hungry 6 year old and the food I gave him made a difference. I
saw it in his eyes, Coach. I'll never forget that feeling. My actions
made a difference.

I
don't know what I am going to do...I guess I'll keep going to my church.
But I won't give a dime to the building of that new church. I'm going
to give it to my buddy's ministry. They are truly meeting the needs
of the lost. We need bigger Christians, not bigger barns.”

Dave Daubenmire
is a veteran 35 year high school football coach who was spurred to action
when attacked and sued by the ACLU in the late 1990â€™s
for praying with his high school football team. After a two year battle
for his 1st amendment rights, the ACLU relented and offered coach an out
of court settlement.

Challenging the
"church of the Status Quo", Pass
The Salt Ministries is calling Christians to wake up and engage the
culture. By taking the fight to the enemy, Coach Daubenmire has become
a recognizable voice in the media as he is an unashamed, articulate, apologist
for the Christian worldview. A popular, high-energy speaker, Coach Daubenmire's
motivational lectures, laced with powerful and relevant Scripture, is
challenging Americans all across the country.

But
I bit my tongue because some things don't need to be said. Especially
when it is obvious that the one I am about to say it to has suddenly come
to the same realization. I just let him vent for a while.